Faded Symphonies
by lovemetendersweet
Summary: And no matter how hard the wind wails, shrieks, cries, and rumbles. The mountain still holds its ground, strongly, firmly, stubbornly. [RenoxTifa]


**Faded Symphonies**

By: FadedJustice

Rain.

Pounding footsteps that slapped against the concrete floor echoed vociferously. Two lithe bodies huddled underneath an umbrella shuddered. A child used a worn textbook for cover as frail body braved the sudden downpour. Steam manifested itself from the drains with the same languid grace as the thin, wispy, tendrils of smoke emanating from glowing embers of a cigarette clasped firmly between his fingers.

Her scarf, Reno noticed, once a bright mirage of rainbow, fluttered wildly about the girl with a faded majesty, reminiscent of a withered wisdom. It made him silently question where the girl would be in the next ten years or so. Whether her surrender to fate would bring her to stand out on that same dismal corner again, adorned in make-up too bold, and a skirt to short. Or whether the tides of time would bring her to a little home on the outskirts of a place like Midel, with a family, accompanied by the little pitter-pattering of a child's feet.

There was a wry smile that delicately lingered on her parted rosy lips. Idly seated, he looked at her frail figure through the glass windows, and felt that somehow she didn't belong. She stood out, painfully so, like a flower among weeds.

It didn't matter really, life, at one pint or another had a tendency to ravage a soul. It took nothing into consideration, and left no one at its mercy. No, life was forever the turning of the wheels of time, and letting the wheel drive you would be acquiescence.

Not that his mind was _too_ preoccupied with the 'life is a satire' deal, the actions of civilians outside, or the fluttering of scarves that would only hold itself together for a year or so.

No his mind had been preoccupied with the raven-haired woman sitting quietly across from him in 7th Heaven. There was a well-hidden sense of rage underneath the façade of indifference in the pale woman's face. A slight hint of tremor in chocolate irises. Rosy lips pressed into a thin line, and Reno swore that if he just lifted his fingers and placed it in the space between them, then he could almost _touch_ the raw, uncanny tension lingering about them.

He hadn't said much, neither of them had. After all, words could only go so far.

_There wasn't anything to be said. _He had told himself, but Reno knew, that there wasn't anything meaningful that he _could_ have said other than a simple sorry.

But he wanted, oh how he wanted, to just break down the barriers and tell her how much he had loved her. How deeply his thoughts of her had gone, and how much his quirky smart-ass demeanor had turned into lovesick teenager at the simple mention of her name. But there came a time, a sick realization, that he knew, he would never actually say those things to her. He never really could. Among all things, love simply felt like too much of a restriction, too much of a burden rather than the sweet liberation of the soul it had been portrayed to be. It couldn't be changed.

Much like how mountains can never bow down to the wind, some parts of a man can never be moved by something as trivial as love.

He had wanted to mend the rift between them, a rift that went back years; a rift that had threatened to kill him from the inside. He couldn't recall what sadistic impulse had broken through his resolve and possessed him to come back. The smug look on his face had eluded him the second he had walked through the glass doors, dripping wet, and faintly shivering from the cold, only to be greeted by a hostile glare, the faint smell of whiskey, and an array of empty seats.

Smooth jazz music played softly from a dusty jukebox in the corner, and the soft muffled rhythmic pounding of the rain weaved together a soft, somber atmosphere. Where time just seemed to stand still. Looking at her, even if she had hated the pure image of him, seemed so peaceful, it was almost surreal. That alone, the peace of mind, among the ruins of his life, seemed like a novelty.

His resolve, his ability to say anything, to do anything, his control had started slipping lately. Like sand through his fingers, with Shinra in ruins, and the Turks scattered, he was left with nothing. Life, it seemed had began to come apart at the seams. There were times, that he felt even he had deserved it. He had deserved being denied by her that much was true. After all, blowing down an entire sector and killing hundreds of innocent people is just the perfect way to get back the girl you've been in love with, right?

But it…just _wasn't_ fair.

He inwardly scoffed at that tendril of thought, and lowered his eyes to the counter. His fingers drumming away absent-mindedly, his line of vision shifted along the polished mahogany counter towards Tifa's hands. One was placed on her hip, while she seemed so goddamn intent on staring at him like he had crawled his way up from the pits off hell. For her, he probably did.

The dim lights above him flickered slightly. He sensed Tifa's shoulders slumped; her anger and tension eluded her, only to be replaced by fatigue.

It had taken a while for Reno to register. There was a subtle glint on the hand that he had overlooked. It had taken a while for Reno to finally grasp the sharp contrast between the silver of the ring and the pale cream of Tifa's skin.

It had taken him a while to register that the same silver encircled her ring finger. In the tense silence, where Reno had been captivated by the thought of just being near her, he had failed to realize the slight swell in her belly. He had failed to realize that maybe, some rifts were too far apart to mend.

He lifted his gaze, and held it at her chocolate irises. Still vibrant, still burning, still loathing.

He had failed to realize, that perhaps, through no fault of either party, a friendship could be easily broken.

He really had to control his sadistic impulses. Reno rose slowly, still holding her gaze with wide blue eyes. They were flickering slightly, anyone could notice, a battle was raging in his mind.

Tifa sighed, her body slumping. She turned around, and Reno was greeted coldly with the image of her shoulder blades. Soft tendrils of long black hair shades the features of her face. The light flickered. Her hands were fists at her sides. The tension had returned, so easily, and it was still so suffocating.

"Go home Reno, there's nothing for you here."

Even though she didn't see it, and wouldn't be around to see it because she had started to go up the stairs, Reno's face fell, his eyes closed, and he drew a soft and almost forced breath just to keep standing.

No, life isn't fair. You don't always get what you want.

And no matter how hard the wind wails, shrieks, cries, and rumbles against the mountains, they still hold their ground, firmly, strongly, stubbornly.

Sometimes love isn't enough to change anything.

**A/N:** Pointless, eh? I'm Alive? ::gasp:: This also has been collecting dust in my notebook, lol. I wrote this 2 years ago, in the 8th grade. So, it's kinda, not up to par I suppose. Thanks for reading though, it meant much, I would love it if you reviewed!!

And for those guys, who read my **Invictus **fic, I'm starting a few more chapters, and then I'll update. Wanna know why I've been gone for so long? Things came up, incase you're curious. I'll tell you.

-Had a fever of 105, almost died, stayed sick for 2 weeks.  
-Had a death in my family  
-Found some 'winter love' people say 'summer love' when it's the summer, it's the winter where I love, and I found a special boy to brave it with.  
-Got my GPA back on track and up to par (8 classes…hard )  
-And Finals start tomorrow actually. So I've been a bit busy  
-Got DDR and Dance Mats, so I've been wasting a lot of time Oo, sorry  
3::Gasp:: I used a heart! The world will end. But it applies to people who actually read this.

Signing off,

FadedJustice


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